The Swiss League could potentially only have nine teams in the 2022-23 season if none of the MySports League teams meet the criteria to join the SL. French teams are interested in the Swiss League, but HC Sierre's president Alain Bonnet believes that the league's priority should be to open the league to Swiss clubs that are well established in their region.
Sébastien Pico, CEO of EHC Visp as well as part of the Swiss League Operations board, says that the idea of integrating foreign teams has been discussed but "our priority is to host attractive MySports League teams. [...] It's flattering to know that French clubs are interested in our league, but it's probably not going to happen right away."
However, whether the MySports League teams will be able to come up with the financial means to play in the Swiss League is a different story. Also, the future of the Swiss League will depend on the other leagues as well, says Pico: "Will the NL have 14 clubs in the long term? The federation is banking heavily on the MS League. They don't want to sell off this product. Therefore, the Swiss League will have to position itself."
